1. Field of the Invention
This invention relates to systems and methods for carrying shopping items.
2. Description of the Related Art
In the United States, it is common practice for store owners to supply paper or plastic shopping bags for their customers. In spite of the detrimental effects these bags may have on the environment, there does not appear to be any movement in the United States to encourage or to require shoppers to use either recyclable or reusable shopping bags. This is in sharp contrast with the practices in many foreign countries where shopping bags are not supplied to customers by store owners.
In the United States, there are several different types and sizes of shopping bags available to shoppers. In the grocery industry, for example, both plastic shopping bags or paper shopping are generally available throughout the United States.
There are several reasons postulated on why shopping bags are not recycled or reused in the United States. Some reasons cited are based on economics and politics factors. Other reasons cited are based on the unique shopping practices in the United States and not found in many foreign countries. In the United States, it is common practice for families to go shopping for food once or twice weekly. During these trips, large quantities of food and other items are usually purchased and brought home in several large shopping bags. This is in sharp contrast with the shopping practice found in many foreign countries where shoppers typically go shopping for food daily. Since more frequent trips are made to the store each week, fewer items are purchased during each trip compared to the number of items purchased each trip by shoppers in the United States. As a result, foreign shoppers carried home fewer, small shopping bags than shoppers in the United States. The number and size of recyclable or reusable shopping bags which foreign shoppers must bring to the store is not a substantial burden or inconvenience.
A shopping system and method designed for shoppers in the United States to encourage them to use reusable shopping bags is needed. In Brennan, (U.S. Pat. No. 5,046,860), a shopping bag assembly is disclosed which includes a primary bag and a plurality of auxiliary bags stored and carried inside the primary bag. The shopping bag assembly, however, is not convenient to carry and has several additional drawbacks which will be apparent from the disclosure of the invention described herein.